Hefty raises halted for public university leaders

With a pay package of $787,258, Francisco Cigarroa, chancellor of the University of Texas System, is the fifth highest paid executive in the country.

For the first time in recent history, the base pay of public university and community college presidents and chancellors flatlined last year, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education’s annual executive compensation survey.

Hammered by the economy and criticized by the public, governing boards put the brakes on big raises that had driven up median compensation 37 percent over inflation over a five-year run, The Chronicle reported. In 2008-2009, median total compensation — salary plus benefits and perks — was $436,111, a 2.3 percent increase over the previous year.

In the prior four years, executive pay climbed between 7.6 and 18.9 percent each year, according to The Chronicle data.

“This year’s survey results are a break from a five-year pattern. Steadily rising pay packages of public university chiefs riled parents, students and politicians, especially as tuition increases also had been hefty from year to year,” said Jeffrey J. Selingo, editor of The Chronicle, which first conducted and published the executive compensation survey of public universities in 2001.

The top-paid public university president is Gordon Gee, who brought in more than $1.5 million at Ohio State University. Gee did give some back, however, donating $320,850 from a university bonus toward a scholarship fund.

Francisco Cigarroa, chancellor of the University of Texas System, clocked in at No. 5 with a pay package worth $787,258.

In the world of community colleges, the highest paid executive was Eduardo J. Padrón at Miami Dade College with compensation of $548,459.

In Texas, the highest paid community college leader was Richard Carpenter at Lone Star College, who made $370,760.

Bruce Leslie, chancellor of the Alamo Colleges, ranked No. 23 on the pay scale with a package worth $321,000.

The University of Texas at San Antonio was not included in The Chronicle survey of 185 public universities and community colleges.